On three days in May three musical workshops with VBW JUNGES MUSICAL took place at the Raimund Theatre within the project “K3 – Cultural Education with Apprentices” funded by the OeAD and Basis.Kultur.Wien.
Under the title “MUSICAL – more than theatre” three apprentice classes were given an insight into the genre of musicals and the working world at the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien. In an eight-hour musical workshop the contents of the musical MISS SAIGON were discussed, role models were questioned, references to the present and connecting points between the musical and the living environment of the young adults were made by means of methods from theatre pedagogy, improvisation, singing and dance, etc. During a backstage tour and a lecture the young people gained insights into everyday working life at the VBW. A visit to a performance of MISS SAIGON at the Raimund Theatre rounded off the project.
Jakob Calice, Managing Director of the OeAD: “By means of these workshops apprentices will not only get a look behind the scenes that will show them which occupations exist in the art sector. Starting from their own living and working world, they will also have the opportunity to try out their own artistic skills and contribute creatively. Working in the art world shows them that teamwork, communication skills and the development of solution strategies are required in every occupation. Young people can therefore gain professional experience through cultural education.”
Kurt Gollowitzer, Director of Wien Holding: “The cooperation between the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien and the OeAD and Basis.Kultur.Wien gives young adults an insight into the world of work at the theatre – in front of, behind and on stage. Besides experiencing the joy of art and creativity the young people will acquire important skills such as cooperation, consideration and communication skills. In this way the young people will discover connections between the theatre and their own working and living environment in a creative way. I would like to thank all those involved for the implementation of this project series and I am looking forward to continuing this cooperation.”
Franz Patay, Managing Director of Vereinigte Bühnen Wien: “Culture is the mirror of our society. Developing cultural education projects for all generations and with partners has always been a major concern of the Vereinigte Bühnen Wien. The idea of the apprentice project is: to convey culture, to break down barriers, to make theatre tangible and to enable learning through art and culture. The project is now taking place for the second time and we would like to thank the OeAD and Basis.Kultur.Wien for their renewed cooperation.”
Christian Struppeck, VBW Musical Director: “Music theatre develops through the perfect interplay of music, acting, singing, dance and technology. By taking a look behind the scenes the apprentices gain an insight into the diverse working world of a theatre. Due to the interactive and participatory cultural education workshops they will perceive what happens on stage with completely different eyes in the subsequent attendance of the performance. We are happy familiarise young people with the different areas of the musical in this way and to promote and support their passion for culture.”
Monika Erb, Managing Director and Renate Teufel, Project Manager of Basis.Kultur.Wien: “With the cultural education initiative GO.FOR.CULTURE Basis Kultur Wien together with the OeAD series K3 projects wants to provide tailor-made offers to open up access for young people to Viennese cultural institutions and help them establish their own references. The workshop MUSICAL – MORE THAN THEATRE is an excellent example of this. Through a visit to a show, a backstage tour and an associated workshop different perspectives on the musical and theatre world are opened up and can be experienced close up. In the end, however, not only the young people are enriched by the intensive dealing with the genre; the musical world also gains a new audience. So it’s a classical win-win situation.”